1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to food appliances and more specifically to food appliances for removing excess water from food articles. In particular, the present invention relates to a salad spinner having a drive assembly separate from a spinner cover and attached to a basket for causing rotation of the basket and a braking system in the spinner cover for stopping basket rotation.
2. Description of Related Art
Salad spinners are well known in the art and are primarily designed for food preparation, particularly in the cleaning and drying of certain food articles. Typically, an individual washes the food articles by immersion in a water bath or by directing a stream of water onto the food articles. In many situations, it is desirable to dry the washed food articles.
Salad spinners in the prior art typically consist of an outer bowl with solid walls and an inner perforated basket adapted to nest and spin within the outer bowl. Food articles are placed in the inner basket and a lid is provided to cover the food articles. A drive assembly is provided in the lid for spinning the inner bowl relative to the outer bowl whereby water on the food articles can be passed through the perforated wall of the inner basket and displaced to collect in the bottom of the outer bowl. A handle for operating the drive assembly is associated with the lid placed over the bowl.
Moreover, due to the drive assembly being provided in the lid, the salad spinner operates to spin only when the lid is placed over the bowl. Additionally, since the drive assembly is provided in the lid, cleaning of the lid becomes a more complicated task.
Therefore, there is a need not only for a salad spinner which removes excess water from food articles, but also provides an improved drive assembly, wherein the drive assembly is associated with a bottom portion of the inner basket of the salad spinner.